The Playbuilding Process:

• Define your objective - what do you want to say? What matters to you?
• Researching - Use the internet including youtube, news channels such as ABC or look at newspapers such The New York Times to gather information on your theme. You can also use the school library, your local library or larger libraries like the State Library as an alternative to the internet.
• Segmenting - work out different sections of your play using your research as a guide.
• Finding a Focus - find a moment, situation, or aspect on which to base the drama for that particular section.
• Building a Role - Who am I? All characters in a play should have a background. Use your research to define who you are in the play. For fictional characters create your own background by writing a list of the different attributes your character has and anything else you feel is relevant to flesh out that character.
• Belief in the Situation - Use props or find a piece of furniture or perhaps a piece of music, a picture or a poem that helps you to create your own belief in both the character and the scenario you are creating. This also helps to provide stimulus for the creative process.
• Sharing information - Use both your Wiki Group pages and your rehearsal time to share your ideas with the rest of the group. You can also ask your peers and your teacher (me!) to give you any feedback about your ideas.
• Improvising - Use improvisation to explore your ideas, scenarios and characters. Play 'Spacejump', 'Get off the Chair', 'Physical Offer' or any other improvisational game to further explore and help create scenes for your play.
• Reacting and Responding - After your rehearsal be sure to designate time to discuss the elements of what you did eg: What worked?, What didn't work?, What needs to be done?, What should happen next?
• Recording - Designate one person each session to record any activities that took place. You may do this with a camcorder, mobile phone or perhaps you will write your ideas into a script format. This will help to formulate the final product - your play!
• Slowing the Drama - This is a great exercise to help create 'tension' in the drama. You might want to emphasis a point or prolong an experience. Perhaps you can try different scenes in slow motion, or 'extend' a thought or idea in the drama.
• Logbook and Evaluation - This is a very important part of your playbuilding assessment task. You must record all your activities, thoughts and processes into your drama log book which will go toward the final mark for your assessment.